Starting with the good, character design, art direction and animation are amazing, it has a lot of charm and uniqueness of the 90s anime era with an original touch, many artistic choices made these OVAs stand out from other animations in that regard and it’s easy to see some kind of inspiration from Nausicaa. The animation has plenty of dynamic shots that also make great use of negative space and geography that give a good sense of scale, like making places massive or more condensed. It has a Sci-fi aesthetic of that era that hasn’t been replicated since then, so watching these OVAs gave me nostalgic feelings that I wasn’t aware that I needed, so overall at least visually it has a lot to praise and love.
In regards to the story while is based on FFV its ties are quite light, almost non-existent, it doesn’t feel like a sequel but more like a spin-off which allegedly it’s what they were looking for while making these OVAs, still, I like how it is connected but I can see how for someone else it would be a turn-off, and that is difficult to argue upon. The tone’s also messy, it is not that the Final Fantasy series doesn’t have comedy and lighthearted subplots but Legend of the Crystals takes this whimsicalness to the point of being distracting. For instance, there’s a lot of female sexualization, I don’t mind it that much but in some instances it went to the point of being too much, like panty shots and panty jokes left and right through all the chapters, again it goes with the whimsical line they went to but if even I noticed it’s because it can be too forced sometimes, FFV has some degree of sexualization so I guess this should not be a complete surprise.
It has a colorful cast that makes things more fun, in the vein of the more modern Final Fantasy XIII the party it’s composed of an unlikely bunch of characters that don't get along that well between them but they have a great dynamic nevertheless. Although our main character Prettz can be quite annoying sometimes and be as one-dimensional as they come, on the other hand, we have Linary which feels like a Ghibli character and she is easily the most interesting character but sadly, even when she’s a key character she is ever sent to the background, the other characters are quite solid and fun, if only the main antagonist has the same charm as them.
Although these OVAs never go the heights the game went before and it has issues that can’t be overlooked and it isn’t that interesting, it has a great rhythm and never a dull moment. Its sense of art serves as a patch that hides some of its problems but still, it’s hard to see for whom these episodes were aimed, for fans of the game? or for newcomers that don't know the lore of the game and just want to watch something cool? It certainly missed the mark for a good shot between the two of them. I think that it serves as a new side story of FFV but sadly it isn’t an obligated view for anybody, still, if you’re fixed to watch them you’ll likely have a good enough time.
